Refrigerator safety device



Juhe 21, 1966 H. w. KLINGAMAN 3,

REFRIGERATOR SAFETY DEVICE Filed March 30, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG.6.

INVENTOR Harold W. Klingaman BY 0/ F ATTORNEYS June 21, 1966 Filed March 30, 1964 H. W. KLINGAMAN REFRIGERATOR SAFETY DEVICE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fl 6. 5. Harold W. K

INVENTOR I in g a m o n ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,256,841 REFRIGERATOR SAFETY DEVICE Harold Warren Klingaman, 780 17th St, Primghar, Iowa Filed Mar. 30, 1964, Ser. No. 355,792 5 Claims. (Cl. 109-635) This invention relates generally to safety devices to prevent suffocation of a child in an artight enclosure, and more particularly to a safety device which prevents suffocation of a child in a refrigerator of the type normally used in the home. 7

Each year children needlessly die because of suffocation when they are trapped in the cabinet portions of refrigerators and other enclosures which are substantially airtight when the door ofthe cabinet portion is closed. Such accidents frequently occur in refrigerators that have been abandoned by their owner, after the refrigerator has served its useful purpose. Just as frequently such accidents occur with refrigerators that are temporarily not being used, for example refrigerators in a vacant house or vacant apartment, or in refrigerators that are used for another purpose, for example, storage of various items after the refrigerator has become inoperative.

The trapping of children in such cabinets frequently occurs while the children are at play. Sometimes the game is hide and seek, and a child climbs into the refrigerator and pulls the door closed upon itself. In other instances one child may inadvertently close the door while another child is in the refrigerator, and the child who closes the door then finds that he cannot exert sufiicient force to open the refrigerator, when the door has a magnetic latch, or cannot reach the handle of the door, when the door has a spring type latch.

To prevent the escape of cool air from a refrigerator by convection refrigerators are necessarily constructed to form an airtight cabinet enclosure when the door of the refrigerator is closed. Hence, when a child climbs into the refrigerator and the door is closed, it frequently takes but a few minutes to exhaust the airsupply in the refrigerator and the child suffocates. Since small children between the ages of one and a half and 4 or 5 years of age frequently do not have the strength to open a magnetically latched refrigerator door, and cannot open a spring latched door from the inside, the end result, as shown by statistics, is a relatively high accidentaldeath rate due to suffocation in airtight cabinet portions of such devices. Hence, there is a definite need for a fully automatic safety device which positively prevents trapping or otherwise locking of children in airtight enclosures of the cabinet portions of such devices asrefrigerators.

Applicant has devised such a safety device which automatically prevents suffocation of children in refrigerators. In its preferred embodiment which will subsequently be described in detail, a closure operating member is actuable to a condition in which the door of the cabinet is either opened automatically in response to the presence of a child in'the cabinet, or is prevented from closing at all if a child is in the cabinet, depending on the weight of the child and the extent of his activity within the cabinet. The door operating member is actuated in response to the weight of the child on a supporting portion of the interior of the cabinet on which the weight of the child must necessarily rest when in the cabinet. 'In the pre- "ice ferred embodiment, a force transmitting member is connected between, the supporting surface on which the weight of the child would necessarily rest, and the closure operating member, to actuate the door operating member to either prevent closing of the cabinet door if the weight of the child is sufiicient to actuate the operating member when the child merely climbs into the refrigerator, or to actuate the door operating member after the cabinet door is closed in response to the increased weight applied to the support due to motion of the child within the cabinet in an attempt to escape.

It is believed that one reason that manufacturers of refrigerators, and other devices which have airtight cabinets have not attempted to incorporate such safety devices in refrigerators during manufacture is because of the high cost of a safety device which would operate effectively and in a fail-safe manner. Applicants safety device operates in this fail-safe manner, is extremely easy to incorporate in both existing refrigerators, and in refrigerators during manufacture, and is extremely economical,

' costing only a very nominal additional amount to place the safety device in the refrigerator.

In view of the foregoing, a first and most important object of the present invention is to provide a safety device for airtight cabinets which positively prevents suffocation of a child trapped in the cabinet.

A further object is to provide a safety device to prevent entrapment of a child in an airtight cabinet, which requires manual resetting in a manner which cannot be accomplished by a child so that the door of the cabinet is positively prevented from being closed by children at play once the device is actuated.

Another and still further object of the present invention is to provide the safety device in combination with the supporting members within an airtight cabinet, and a device connected between the supporting members and a closureoperating member to actuate the operating member in response to the weight of the child on any of the supporting members in the cabinet.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a safety device, the proper operation of which cannot be accidentally defeated.

Another and further object of this invention is to provide a safety device with the features set forth above which is economical to manufacture, easy to adapt to existing refrigerators, and relatively simple to incorporate in newly manufactured refrigerators.

The-following specification, of which the accompanying drawings form a part, explains the manner in which the foregoing objects are attained in accordance with this invention. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a front elevat-ional view of the safety device of this invention incorporated in a conventional typev erator;

FIG. is a view similar to FIG. 4 and showing the door operating mechanism in a released position;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view on a smaller scale taken along lines 6-6 ofFIG. 4 showing the door operating mechanism and the associated parts of the refrigerator;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged partial'view looking along line 7-7 of FIG. 2 showing the details of the reset arrangement for the door operating mechanism as well as the support and bottom wall operated member.

Turning now to the drawings in detail and particularly to FIGS. 1 and 2 it is seen that the safety device of this invention is incorporated in an airtight cabinet 1 of a refrigerator 2.. Cabinet 1 has a rear wall 3, a bottom wall 4, side walls 5 and 6 and a horizontally swingable door 7 supported on hinges 8 at the right hand side of refrigerator 2, as seen in FIG. 1.

Within cabinet 1 is the usual freezing compartment 9 "adjacent top wall 10 of the cabinet, several horizontal shelves 1113 which provide support for articles placed in the refrigerator, and drawers 14 conventionally used for vegetables and the like located between shelf 13 and bottom wall 4. Refrigerator 1 also has an outer wall structure which forms a box shaped enclosure for cabinet 1, the wall portions of the outer wall structure being spaced from and parallel with the walls of the cabinet, to provide space for insulation 15 to thermally insulate cabinet 1 against heat loss. The outer wall structure includes outer side walls 16, and 17, outer top wall 18, outer bottom wall 19, and outer rear wall 20. Extending between the inner and outer wall structures is a wall portion 21 which closes the space between the inner and outer walls at the front of the refrigerator.

Below outer bottom wall 19 is a compartment 22 defined by wall portions of the refrigerator at the bottom thereof. The bottom of the refrigerator is provided with short legs 22' for supporting refrigerator 2 on a surface, for example a kitchen floor. Compartment 22 commonly houses the various portions of the refrigeration unit including motor, compressor, etc. (not shown) of the refrigerator.

The rear edge of shelf 11 is supported by a pair of support elements 23 and 24 secured to the rear wall 3 of cabinet 1 in horizontally aligned relation. Support elements 23 and 24 each have an enlarged head spaced [from rear wall 3 to provide an upwardly projecting tab which hooks under a downwardly depending peripheral skirt 25 of shelf 11, this interhooked arrangement pre venting slipping of shelf 11 in a fore and aft direction during normal use of the refrigerator.

The right hand side of the shelf 11 is similarly supported by a support element 26 secured to side wall 5 at a location offset toward the front of the refrigerator, support element 26 having an enlarged head which hooks under that portion of skirt 25 at the right hand side of the shelf, as viewed in FIGURE 1. This arrangement prevents lateral sliding of shelf 11.

Shelves 12 and 13 are similarly mounted, shelf 12 being supported by support elements 27-29 and shelf 13 being supported by support elements 3032.

A portion of the safety device of this invention is arranged to support the left hand side of shelves 11-13 of cabinet 1 as viewed in FIGURE 1. The support there includes a rectangular bar 33 of sufiicient length to extend at least to the level of shelf 11 as well as through bottom wall 4 of cabinet 1. The bar 33 is relatively thin so it fits between side wall 6, and the left hand edges of shelves 1113. Adjustably secured to bar 33 are support elements 3436 which support the left hand edge of shelves '11 through 13. As best seen in FIGURE 7- which shows support element 36, each support element partially encircles bar 33 and is provided with a threaded fastener in the form of a bolt 37 threaded into support element 36 for securing the support element against movement along the bar at any desired position. Extending upwardly from support element 36 is a finger 38 which engages under the peripheral skirt of shelf 13 to support the left hand side of the shelf and to further secure the shelf against lateral movement in the cabinet 1. It is to be understood that support elements 34 and 35 are each identical to support element 36 and have support fingers 39 and 40 which extend under the respective peripheral skirts of shelves 11 and L2 and bolts 41 and 42 to secure elements 34 and 35 to bar 33.

As best seen in FIGS. 4 and 6 bar 33 extends through an opening 43 in bottom wall 4. Opening 43 is provided with a seal in the form of a resilient grommet 44 of rubber or other resilient plastic material. A rectangular opening 44 in grommet 44 is so dimensioned as to lightly engage the surfaces of bar 33 that pass through the grommet to provide a seal that permits sliding motion of the bar relative to the grommet. This seal provided by the grommet prevents the flow of air around bar 33 from cabinet 1 to the insulation space between the inner and outer wall portions of the refrigerator.

Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 7 it is seen that a door operating device 45 is disposed on outer bottom wall 19 at a location immediately beneath bar 33. Door operatmg mechanism 45 includes a frame 46, a plunger assembly 47 carried by the frame, a latch 48 for latching the plunger assembly and a latch operating mechanism 49 including a resilient bushing 50.

Frame 46 is formed from a length of strap iron that is bent to form, as viewed in side elevation, a rectangular shell having a straight flat upper member 51 in spaced parallel relation to a lower member 52 these members being oined by side legs 5-3 and 54 extending between the ends of members 51 and 52. Lower member 52 is drilled and tapped to receive screws 55 and 56 which extend through suitable holes in outer bottom wall 19 to secure the door operating mechanism to the wall.

Plunger assembly 47 includes a plunger 57 having an enlarged cylindrical head 58 integral with a smaller diameter shaft portion 59. Shaft 59 is disposed for slidmg movement ;in bore 60 of a bushing 61. Bushing 61 has external threads 62 which permit threading the bushing into an internally threaded opening 63 in leg 54 to secure the bushing to the frame. When bushing 61 is threaded into opening 63 the axis of the bushing lies parallel with upper and lower frame members 51 and 52 and is spaced approximately midway between the members. counter-bored as at 64 to provide a transverse annular shoulder 65 that forms a seat for one end of helically wound compression spring 66. With shaft 59 disposed in bore 60, head 58 of the plunger extends through a clrcular opening 67 in leg 53 of the frame, the axis of opening 67 being coincident with the axis of plunger 57. Fixed to shaft 59 between head 58 and bushing 61 is a collar 68 that presents a transverse annular shoulder 69 which faces toward bushing 61. Spring 66 is selected to have an appropriate diameter to slip over shaft 59 and fit into counter-bore 64 so that the ends of the spring seat on shoulders 65 and 69.

Latch 48 is formed from sheet metal which is spring material and has one end fastened with rivets to lower member 52 of the frame. The free end of latch member 48 is generally U-shaped as viewed in front elevation, having spaced apart legs 70 projecting toward plunger 57 from base portion 71 of the latch member. As viewed in side elevation (FIG. 4), the front end of legs 70 are generally triangular, having downwardly sloped forwardly facing edges 72 which terminate at edges 73 disposed in a plane perpendicular to plunger 57, edges 73 facing toward leg 54 of the frame. Merging with edges 73 are edges 74 of legs 70, edges 74 facing generally upwardly and inclined only slightly relative to the axis of plunger 57. The spring properties of latch member 48 are such that the free end of the latch member is normally biased toward the plunger so edges 73 engage a transverse annular face 74 of collar 68, when the plunger is latched as shown in FIG. 4.

The end of bore 60 remote from leg 54 is Latch operating assembly 49 includes a latch operating element 75 secured to latch operating lever 76 with screw 77 and bushing 78 which extend through opening 79 in upper member 51 of the frame. Lever 76 curves toward frame 46 from the head of the screw 77, is bent where it passes through an opening 80 of upper member 51 and terminates at an enlarged end 81 having a U-shaped slot 82 therein the legs of which straddle bushing 61. Between rubber bushing 50 and end 81 is a washer 83, loosely disposed on bushing 61, which engages the surface of end 81 that faces toward leg 54. Afiixed to bushing 61 on the other side of end 81 of the lever is a collar 84 adjustably secured to bushing 61 with a set screw. Collar 84 is secured to bushing 61 at such a location that bushing 50 is under slight axial compression.

The edge of opening 80 that extends under the bend in lever 76 is slightly rounded to provide a bearing surface 85 on which the face of the lever at 86 pivots when force is applied to the lever by bar 33.

Latch operating element 75 is L-shaped as viewed in side elevation, (FIG. 4) having a vertical leg 87 and a horizontal leg. Vertical leg 87 has a U-shaped slot 88 the sides of which extend on opposite sides of the shaft 59 to straddle the shaft. Flat horizontal bottom edges 89 of leg 87 are disposed to engage edges 74 of latch member 48 when latch operating element 75 is moved downwardly by a force from bar 33.

A lock member in the form of a hook 90 is mounted for pivotal movement in a plane perpendicular to the axis plunger 57. Hook 90 is fixed to a pin 91 having a head 92 with a slot to receive a screwdriver. The pin extends through an opening 93 in leg 52, the axis of opening 93 being offset to one side of and above the axis of plunger 57 so the inner curved portion of the hook normally rests by gravity against the cylindrical surface of head 58 of the plunger when the plunger is cocked. Axial movement of the pin out of opening 93 is prevented by a spring clip 94 secured to the end of the pin opposite the head.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6 door operating mechanism 45 is mounted on outer bottom wall 19 with the axis of plunger 57 perpendicular to the plane of wall 21. With plunger 57 in its latched position as shown in FIG. 4' head 58 of the plunger extends through opening 95 so that flat end 96 is approximately flush with the outer surface of wall 21. As viewed in front elevation (FIG. 6) the axes of plunger 57 and bar 33 are seen to intersect, at a right angle.

Bar 33 is connected to lever 76 by inserting a narrow tongue 96' formed at the end of the bar, through an opening 97 of the lever and then bending the end of the tongue to prevent removal of the bar by the user of the refrigerator. Secured to bar 33 at a location between grommet 44 and lever 76 is an operating element extension 98 that extends diagonally immediately beneath bottom wall 4 and is normally slightly spaced therefrom. Bottom wall 4 is made of thin sheet metal provided with upwardly projecting bead like indentations 99 formed therein, the indentations being in a generally rectangular array to increase the flexibility of the bottom and thus provide for an over center snap action similar to that of the dished portion of an oil can.

Operating element extension 98 extends about twothirds the distance to the geometric center of bottom wall 4, and terminates at a fiat end 100. The bottom wall normally is bowed slightly upwardly so that the wall is spaced slightly from end 100 of the operating member extension. When a predetermined amount of weight is applied directly to bottom wall 4 the bottom wall collapses and snaps over to a downwardly bowed position thereby engaging and applying pressure to operating element 98 by engaging flat end 100. Such press is transmitted to bar 33 to actuate latch 48 of the door operating mechanism.

The plunger of door operating mechanism 45 is released by applying sufiicient force to bar 33 to move edges 89 of latch operating element 75 into engagement with edges 74 of latch 48 and push the latch downwardly until edge 73 is moved a distance suflicient to release collar 68. The plunger then snaps forwardly under the action of spring 66 to the position shown in FIG. 5 the forward motion of the plunger being limited by engagement of face 74' of the collar with the inner surface of leg 53. In this position end of head 58 of the plunger extends a suflicient distance beyond wall 21 to engage the inner surface of door 7 to open same, and if already open, to function as a stop to prevent closing the door. As soon as plunger 57 is operated to its extended position hook 90 moves downwardly by gravity to engage shaft 59 and thus provide a lock behind transverse annular surface 101 at the connection between head 58 and shaft 59. In this position hook 90 positively prevents resetting the plunger to its latched position by slamming the door, or by otherwise pushing inwardly on the plunger. To reset the plunger it is first necessary to insert a screwdriver through opening 102 (FIG. 7) in wall 21 to engage the slot in the head 92 of pin 91 and rotate the pin slightly in a clockwise direction to lift the hook beyond the periphery of head 58, whereupon the plunger can be pushed axially inwardly until shoulder 69 of collar 68 is behind the plane of edges 73 of latch 48 to permit the latch to snap toward shaft 59 to latch the plunger in its cocked position. Opening 102 is preferably made very small, for example of an inch, and the head of the pin 91 is spaced from wall 21, as shown in FIG. 4 to prevent children from operating hook 90 merely by inserting a finger through opening 97, and then resetting the plunger. To provide for additional safety, opening 102 is normally closed with a plug of the snap-in type (not shown) that requires a screwdriver for removal.

As is apparent from the previous descriptions with regard to FIG. 2, bar 33 supports one side of shelves 11 through 13 via the engagement of support elements 34 through 36 with the sides of the shelves. When a weight above a predetermined amount is placed on anyof the shelves lever 76 is operated to move latch member 48 away from plunger 57 and the plunger snaps forward to its extended position. The door operating mechanism can be pre-set to operate at different predetermined loads. End 81 of operating lever 76 partially deforms bushing 50 when a force is applied to the lever by bar 33. This effect is caused 'by the pivotal motion of the lever on bearing surface 85 of the frame. Hence, it is apparent that the force acting on lever 76 that is required to release the latch is determined by the resiliency and degree of preloading of bushing 50. Therefore, to adjust the door operating mechanism to operate under the action of different loads applied to lever 76 by bar 33 it is merely necessary to select a bushing 50 having the desired characteristics of resiliency and to select a washer 82 of such thickness that the preloading of the bushing is that which is required to operate the latch member when a predetermined load is applied to bar 33.

If for some reason the owner of the refrigerator removes the shelves 11 through 13 and drawers 14 the device still operates to prevent trapping of the child in the cabinet portion of the refrigerator. Such operation of door operating mechanism 45 is effected by flexible bottom wall 4 cooperating with extension 98. Thus, a weight applied to bottom wall 4 causes the bottom wall to collapse and bow downwardly thereby exerting a force on an extension 98 sufficient to move bar 33 downwardly to operate latch 48 as previously described. After the weight is removed from wall 4 the wall is pushed back to its upwardly bowed position by the forces from bushing 50. If necessary the wall can be reset by pulling up on bar 33 to snap the wall back when flat end engages the walls.

It is tobe noted that in its extended position the end 96 of plunger 58 is at a sufficient distance from the plane of wall 21 to prevent closing the refrigerator door. In refrigerators having a door with a magnetic latch plunger 57 can be operated to its extended position either before or after a child climbs into the refrigerator without endangering the life of the child. When a magnetic latch is provided on the refrigerator a bushing 50 is selected to permit release of the plunger in response to a weight slightly greater than the predetermined weight of a child. Under these circumstances the door could be closed for a short While but would be operated by the dynamic weight of the child moving about the refrigerator in an attempt to escape. When the refrigerator door has a mechanical latch the door operating mechanism is preset to release the plunger 57 as soon as a childs weight is applied to any of the shelves.

It has been determined that the average two year old child weighs 25 pounds. Therefore, a bushing 50 is selected which will permit lever 76 to operate the door operating mechanism whenever the weight on the shelf system exceeds 25 pounds. It is to be noted that shelves 11-13 are somewhat flexible so that a childs weight causes the shelf to deform a suflicient amount to move bar 33 to operate the door operating mechanism.

For example, assume that a child climbs onto shelf 11. Shelf 11 will deform slightly so that a portion of the additional weight is applied to bar 33 at support element 34. This weight depresses bar 33 and hence, transmits the load to lever 76, causing the lever to pivot on bearing surface 85. As the lever pivots, its motion is resisted by bushing 50, and hence, if the weight on the shelf were less than the predetermined weight of a child e.g. 25 pounds, the plunger would not be operated. However, since the weight applied to the shelf is 25 pounds the lever pivots a distance sufiicient to press edges 89 of latch operating element 75 against latch 48 to operate the plunger. When the plunger operates to its extended position door 7 cannot be closed because of the restraining action of the plunger, and the operation of the lock in the form'of hook 90.

In view of the foregoing description it is apparent that applicant has devised a novel arrangement for positively preventing the entrapment of'a child in the cabinet portion of an airtight enclosure. While a preferred embodiment has been illustrated and described it is to be understood that numerous changes could be made in both the force transmitting arrangement and the door operating and stop arrangement without departing from the scope of this invention as defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a safety arrangement to prevent trapping of a child in the cabinet portion of a refrigerator having a door the combination comprising:

a plurality of horizontal shelves in said cabinet portion;

a force transmitting device connected to each of said plurality of shelves and forming at least a portion of the supporting structure for said shelves; a door operating mechanism comprising:

a stop member movable between a first position and a second position, resilient means for moving said stop member from said first position to said second position, and latch means to normally maintain said stop member in said first position said stop member being effective to prevent closing and latching of the door of said refrigerator whenever said stop member is in said second position; and

said force transmitting device being connected to operate said latch means whenever the dynamic weight of a child on said shelves exceeds a predetermined amount,

whereby, said stop member is moved to said second position to prevent closing and latching of said door whenever a child is in said cabinet portion.

2. A safety arrangement in accordance with claim 1 in which:

said cabinet portion has a flexible horizontal bottom wall, and

said force transmitting device includes a member extending adjacent said bottom wall,

said bottom wall being sufiiciently flexible to engage said member to operate said latch means whenever a predetermined weight is on said bottom wall.

3. A safety arrangement in accordance with claim 1 in which:

said force transmitting device is a generally vertical rigid bar.

4. In a safety arrangement to prevent trapping of a child in a chamber in a refrigerator having an opening sufficiently large to permit a child to enter said chamber, and a closure movable to substantially seal said opening,

the combination comprising:

a support in said chamber for normally supporting articles thereon;

a restraining device operable to a first condition in which said restraining device permits normal opening and closing of said chamber, with said closure, and

a second condition in which said restraining device prevents closing of said chamber with said closure;

means connected between said support and said restraining device to actuate said restraining device to said second condition in response to the dynamic weight of a child on said support;

said restraining device including a stop member movable into the path of travel of said closure to prevent closing said opening whenever said restraining device is operated to said second condition;

lock means operative to positively prevent movement of said stop member out of the path of travel of said closure when said restraining device is operated to said second condition; and

release means to release said lock means to permit manually resetting said restraining device to its first condition from said second condition, said release means being substantially concealed relative to the refrigerator and including a concealed tool engageable portion adapted to be manipulated by a household tool to release said lock means;

whereby said restraining device can be reset by an adult with a household tool, but cannot usually be reset by a child unaware of the existence or location of said release means.

5. In a safety arrangement to prevent trapping of a child in the chamber of a refrigerator having an opening sufficiently large to permit a child to enter said chamber, and a closure movable to substantially seal said opening, the combination comprising:

a support in said-chamber for normally supporting articles thereon;

a restraining device operable to a first condition in which said restraining device permits opening and closing of said chamber, with said closure, and

a second condition in which said restraining device prevents closing of said chamber with said closure;

means connected between said support and said restraining device to actuate said restraining device to said second condition in response to the dynamic weight of a child on said support;

said restraining device comprising a frame secured to a portion of the refrigerator, a plunger movable to a first position in which said first condition is satisfied, and a second position in which said second condition is satisfied,

spring urged latch means to normally maintain said plunger in said first position,

first spring means to urge said plunger from said first position to said second position;

latch operating means to unlatch said latch means,

said latch operating means being directly con- 9 10 nected to said means connected between said References Cited by the Examiner support and said restraining device, UNITED STATES PATENTS second spring means to resist actuation of said latch operating means, ,119 10/19 7 Ferdon 1096635 lock means to normally prevent movement of said 5 2,830,547 4/ 1958 Zieche 109 63.5 plunger from said second position to said first 2,869,486 1/1959 s i 109 l3 5 posltion, and 2,917,010 12/1959 DeVivo 109 -63 5 release means to release said lock means, said 2924185 2/1960 Sukan 5 release means being concealed relative to said u refrigerator; 10 OTHER REFERENCES whereby the plunger of said restraining device is moved Popular Mechanics, May 1956, page 87.

from said first position to said second position by said Spring means When a child is in said refrigerator, and said CHARLES E OCONNELL Primary Examiner plunger is prevented from being returned to its first position by said lock mean-s unt-il said lock release means 15 HARRISON MOS'ELEY, Examine"- is operated to permit resetting said plunger to its first L. I SANTISI Assistant Examiner' position. 

1. IN A SAFETY ARRANGEMENT TO PREVENT TRAPPING OF A CHILD IN THE CABINET PORTION OF A REFRIGERATOR HAVING A DOOR THE COMBINATION COMPRISING A PLURALITY OF HORIZONTAL SHELVES IN SAID CABINET PORTION; A FORCE TRANSMITTING DEVICE CONNECTED TO EACH OF SAID PLURALITY OF SHELVES AND FORMING AT LEAST A PORTION OF THE SUPPORTING STRUCTURE FOR SAID SHELVES; A DOOR OPERATING MECHANISM COMPRISING: A STOP MEMBER MOVABLE BETWEEN A FIRST POSITION, AND A SECOND POSITION, RESILIENT MEANS FOR MOVING SAID STOP MEMBER FROM SAID FIRST POSITION TO SAID SECOND POSITION, AND LATCH MEANS TO NORMALLY MAINTAIN SAID STOP MEMBER IN SAID FIRST POSITION SAID STOP MEMBER BEING EFFECTIVE TO PREVENT CLOSING AND LATCHING OF THE DOOR OF SAID REFRIGERATOR WHENEVER SAID STOP MEMBER IS IN SAID SECOND POSITION; AND SAID FORCE TRANSMITTING DEVICE BEING CONNECTED TO OPERATE SAID LATCH MEANS WHENEVER THE DYNAMIC 